Found this on CyberJournalist.net.
Enjoy!
Friday, December 26, 2008
Wednesday, December 24, 2008
Resumes of the 21st century
I updated my resume today, and I actually put my blog just beneath my contact email.
If you had told me two years ago that blogs would be an important thing to have on a resume, I probably would have laughed in your face. Now, it makes total sense. Wanna find out how much I know already about the industry? How about how much I want to learn about it? Or where I get my information? Or how I go about writing stories or how I approach tasks?
Just read my blog.
It's that easy. You get so much information about me, my work ethic, my enthusiasm, my optimism (or lately, my pessimism) before you even interview me. It's genius. Now for the cover letters... Oy...
If you had told me two years ago that blogs would be an important thing to have on a resume, I probably would have laughed in your face. Now, it makes total sense. Wanna find out how much I know already about the industry? How about how much I want to learn about it? Or where I get my information? Or how I go about writing stories or how I approach tasks?
Just read my blog.
It's that easy. You get so much information about me, my work ethic, my enthusiasm, my optimism (or lately, my pessimism) before you even interview me. It's genius. Now for the cover letters... Oy...
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
A monolithic mess gone morose
Flashback to my October 13th post. My editor took me on a tour of our giant news building, and I was aghast at how much space was going to waste at an incredibly high cost. I offered two options: rent out the extra space or sell the entire building.
Well, it looks like selling is no longer an option. According to the AP, newspapers all over the country are starting to put their behemoth buildings on the market, only they're a few months too late. With the credit crunch, potential buyers are scarce if not completely out of the picture. Like we needed more bad news.
But all is not lost. Here are some reasons to be a happy journalist.
Well, it looks like selling is no longer an option. According to the AP, newspapers all over the country are starting to put their behemoth buildings on the market, only they're a few months too late. With the credit crunch, potential buyers are scarce if not completely out of the picture. Like we needed more bad news.
But all is not lost. Here are some reasons to be a happy journalist.
The most wonderful time of the year (for blogging)
Here's what to do with your blog while you're on vacation.
Apparently, most bloggers worry about losing momentum or their fan base while they're away from work.
It's funny; I tend to blog more while I'm on vacation. Maybe it's because I'm a student and not actually employed, but I'm extremely busy up until the holidays and barely have time to write. And when I actually do blog during the semester, I can't help thinking that I should be studying or working on that paper I've been putting off rather than writing in my blog.
Now, I'm carefree! And so the blogs abound. Lucky you.
Apparently, most bloggers worry about losing momentum or their fan base while they're away from work.
It's funny; I tend to blog more while I'm on vacation. Maybe it's because I'm a student and not actually employed, but I'm extremely busy up until the holidays and barely have time to write. And when I actually do blog during the semester, I can't help thinking that I should be studying or working on that paper I've been putting off rather than writing in my blog.
Now, I'm carefree! And so the blogs abound. Lucky you.
Monday, December 22, 2008
Increase in J-school kids
Apparently, J-school is booming with new applicants.
I'd love to be able to say that it's wonderful that there's an influx of new people who will be ready and able to step up and take over the industry.
However, my real question is: do they really know what they're getting into? And are they really going to be willing to dive headfirst into a struggling industry to try their hardest to salvage what's left and turn it into something great?
I don't think there's really a major for that.
Also:
Median starting salary for journalism and mass communication graduates who earned bachelor's degrees in 2007: $30,000
Ay ay ay...
I'd love to be able to say that it's wonderful that there's an influx of new people who will be ready and able to step up and take over the industry.
However, my real question is: do they really know what they're getting into? And are they really going to be willing to dive headfirst into a struggling industry to try their hardest to salvage what's left and turn it into something great?
I don't think there's really a major for that.
Also:
Median starting salary for journalism and mass communication graduates who earned bachelor's degrees in 2007: $30,000
Ay ay ay...
Multimedia journalists
One of D.C.'s TV news stations has the right idea.
The broadcast station is hiring "multimedia journalists," reporters who will shoot and edit their own stories. WUSA's cameramen will also be changing roles, some of which could even land them on-air.
This is the direction that newspapers need to be heading. One-man multimedia journalists. Reporters who not only investigate and write their own stories, but also shoot some video, edit it and even take some pictures. Add in some blogging and you have an all-around multimedia package that will keep people coming back for more.
Yes, it will take a lot of work on the reporter's part, but honestly, I don't think that's a bad thing with newspapers struggling as much as they are. A little hard work and determination certainly won't hurt anything.
The broadcast station is hiring "multimedia journalists," reporters who will shoot and edit their own stories. WUSA's cameramen will also be changing roles, some of which could even land them on-air.
This is the direction that newspapers need to be heading. One-man multimedia journalists. Reporters who not only investigate and write their own stories, but also shoot some video, edit it and even take some pictures. Add in some blogging and you have an all-around multimedia package that will keep people coming back for more.
Yes, it will take a lot of work on the reporter's part, but honestly, I don't think that's a bad thing with newspapers struggling as much as they are. A little hard work and determination certainly won't hurt anything.
Branding the economic crisis
The Great Depression. The French and Indian War. World War I. Watergate. The Civil Rights Movement.
We read about them in history books and use them in everyday conversations. We understand them, connect to them and can talk to someone across the world about them and still maintain understanding and connectivity.
But who came up with the names? And when? And how?
Today, the economic crisis is struggling through its own branding. While there's certainly chaos on Wall Street, there's also chaos in newsrooms trying to establish a common term that newspapers around the country can use and retain understanding among readers, no matter where they live. Right now, possibilities include the "Wall Street Crisis," the "Credit Crisis," and the "Great Recession."
It seems to me that the same struggle continues with the Iraq War - Operation Iraqi Freedom, the Second Gulf War, the Occupation of Iraq. We all connect with different names that ultimately mean the same thing, but we might miss an initial understanding when we're talking to another person. So who chooses the final brand?
Most of the time, it's journalists. Once newspapers around the country all start using the same terms and names, it doesn't take long before they start to stick. People will use them in everyday conversation and eventually there will no longer be initial confusion about an event being discussed.
It's interesting being in the middle of branding. Sure, I've always been aware of it. Reading about the Civil War, I knew someone must have named it, but I never thought about why they did or how long it might have taken for it to become the "Civil War" rather than the "Union/Confederate War" or the "War Between the North and South."
One day, my children will come home from school talking about the "Great Recession." Maybe I'll tell them how it got its name. Maybe it doesn't really matter. But the process is important and will continue as long as journalism is around (which will be a long, long time).
We read about them in history books and use them in everyday conversations. We understand them, connect to them and can talk to someone across the world about them and still maintain understanding and connectivity.
But who came up with the names? And when? And how?
Today, the economic crisis is struggling through its own branding. While there's certainly chaos on Wall Street, there's also chaos in newsrooms trying to establish a common term that newspapers around the country can use and retain understanding among readers, no matter where they live. Right now, possibilities include the "Wall Street Crisis," the "Credit Crisis," and the "Great Recession."
It seems to me that the same struggle continues with the Iraq War - Operation Iraqi Freedom, the Second Gulf War, the Occupation of Iraq. We all connect with different names that ultimately mean the same thing, but we might miss an initial understanding when we're talking to another person. So who chooses the final brand?
Most of the time, it's journalists. Once newspapers around the country all start using the same terms and names, it doesn't take long before they start to stick. People will use them in everyday conversation and eventually there will no longer be initial confusion about an event being discussed.
It's interesting being in the middle of branding. Sure, I've always been aware of it. Reading about the Civil War, I knew someone must have named it, but I never thought about why they did or how long it might have taken for it to become the "Civil War" rather than the "Union/Confederate War" or the "War Between the North and South."
One day, my children will come home from school talking about the "Great Recession." Maybe I'll tell them how it got its name. Maybe it doesn't really matter. But the process is important and will continue as long as journalism is around (which will be a long, long time).
Monday, December 8, 2008
A beginning and an end
Things are finally wrapping up here, one by one. Today I finished my last article for the special holiday guide that the paper's been publishing this month. My last day physically in the office will be Friday, I think. Honestly, I'm really sad to leave. I love the energy that comes with working at a newspaper. The hustle and bustle. The daily scramble to get stories written. It's intoxicating.I'll be working for Doug McKillip, Democrat representative from Athens, Ga., starting in January and throughout the legislative session. It's not journalism, but politics are my second love so I'm extremely excited to say the least. I have a feeling that this experience will open many doors for me and I'll learn things that will help me become a better journalist down the road.
The local paper has some ideas for me while I'm living in Atlanta. First of all, I'm going to have my own blog connected with the paper and I'm going to be giving updates and accounts of my experience for the entire 40 days. I'm going to have to be careful about what I say and whose toes I'm stepping on, but it'll be a great learning experience.
Also, the paper wants me to start Twittering from the floor. If anything crazy happens or a controversial bill passes, I'll be using my phone to update the paper's Twitter that goes directly on the home page of the paper's web site. It's a really forward-thinking idea, and it's comforting that people at the paper are finally embracing today's technology and social networking opportunities.
Hopefully these things will help me expand my resume to include more online experience. I'm really looking forward to leaving my comfort zone a little bit and learning new things. It's always a little intimidating, but I think I'm ready.
Monday, December 1, 2008
Aching for analysis, apparently
I've been putting off checking Google Reader simply because of the fact that I haven't been checking it. I didn't want to have to sift through post after post after post. But today I realized that the longer I wait, the more posts I'm going to have to endure, so I might as well get it over with.
After I narrowed down 208 new items to about 20 that I actually thoroughly read, I had a realization about blogging. I've always heard that the more you post, the better your blog simply because shorter, more frequent posts attract more readers. It makes sense, and I've always kept that in mind in regard to my blog. I try to post every day, but it's been over a week since my last entry, and I admit I felt a little inadequate and nervous about not being on top of things.
Well, I knew I wasn't going to read every single one of the 200+ items on my Reader, so I went to the blogs that I value most. Later, I realized that I was more likely to read posts by people who blog less frequently than Romenesko-type blogs.
I knew that whatever I read at yelvington.com or Teaching Online Journalism would be well thought-out, original, personal and relevant to me and my interests. Those are the things that I value in blogs. Yes, Romenesko and Twitter are good for short snippets of information and breaking news. I get much of my information and ammunition from sources like those. However, when it comes to the goals that I hope to accomplish with my blog and what I'm interested in reading on others' blogs, I strike a chord with blogs with less-frequent entries and analysis of some sort.
After I narrowed down 208 new items to about 20 that I actually thoroughly read, I had a realization about blogging. I've always heard that the more you post, the better your blog simply because shorter, more frequent posts attract more readers. It makes sense, and I've always kept that in mind in regard to my blog. I try to post every day, but it's been over a week since my last entry, and I admit I felt a little inadequate and nervous about not being on top of things.
Well, I knew I wasn't going to read every single one of the 200+ items on my Reader, so I went to the blogs that I value most. Later, I realized that I was more likely to read posts by people who blog less frequently than Romenesko-type blogs.
I knew that whatever I read at yelvington.com or Teaching Online Journalism would be well thought-out, original, personal and relevant to me and my interests. Those are the things that I value in blogs. Yes, Romenesko and Twitter are good for short snippets of information and breaking news. I get much of my information and ammunition from sources like those. However, when it comes to the goals that I hope to accomplish with my blog and what I'm interested in reading on others' blogs, I strike a chord with blogs with less-frequent entries and analysis of some sort.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
